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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29735079">No Time to Burn nor Bleed</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkFlygon/pseuds/TheDarkFlygon'>TheDarkFlygon</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Caeca Fortuna (Bad Things Happen Bingo) [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Inazuma Eleven</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adrenaline, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Best Friends, Blood and Injury, Gen, Inspired by Hades (Video Game), POV Multiple</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 20:40:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,413</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29735079</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkFlygon/pseuds/TheDarkFlygon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>As long as his sister isn't sure and safe, an older brother will pull through the pain and the blood to find her.<br/>That's something the Break Trio knows all too well as they head onto another adventure through fire and monsters.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Endou Mamoru &amp; Gouenji Shuuya &amp; Kidou Yuuto, Kidou Yuuto &amp; Otonashi Haruna</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Caeca Fortuna (Bad Things Happen Bingo) [8]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2097189</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Bad Things Happen Bingo</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>No Time to Burn nor Bleed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>
  <em>Adrenaline really does makes you do what you usually can't pull off, huh?</em>
</p><p>Written for my Bad Things Happen Bingo card:<br/>https://thedarkflygon.tumblr.com/post/639403196939403264/here-is-your-card-for-bad-things-happen-bingo<br/>Prompt: I Ain't Got Time to Bleed + Kidou</p><p>The other day, I was trying to write something that wasn't Valiant Soul because I'm not mentally ready to tackle on the FFI arc for it, so I was brainstorming. I then realized I hadn't written much Kidou up until this point, which was weird because he's one of my favorite Ina characters (really, the most I've written of him was his appearance in <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28923705">From the Eye of the Typhoon</a>), so I set on to correct at least a part of this mistake. I also realized it'd be a good opportunity to write more of the Break Trio, since their dynamic is one of my favorites. Writing Endou is always fun and Gouenji is a pretty cool character too.<br/>I'm not sure of what this AU is, tbh. At first I was going for my usual magical girl-like AU setup, but the Hades inspiration was too strong, and that's when the references started to slip. I may expand on this universe or merge it with my usual set-up; I'll see. Just know people are usually hunting for stuff in teams and fight monsters I guess.</p><p>I also didn't know when starting on this fic, but the actual name of the "I Ain't Got Time to Bleed" is "Belated Injury Reaction" on TV Tropes and it was a <em>bitch</em> to write. I had no idea of what I was doing lmao. I tried to make most of it through.</p><p>One of my new kicks in writing Inazuma is to use underused given name (see: my obsession in <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27742186">Valiant Soul</a> to do just that), so y'all get to see my weird POVs in action. Gotta do what no one else does!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Haruna is in danger and that’s all he needed to get moving.</p><p> </p><p>While Yuuto doesn’t know why he’s got that feeling, he’s sure of it: if there is one part of his instincts that never gets wronged, it’s what Endou would affectionally refer to as his “big brother instinct” (a concept whose existence Gouenji hasn’t even tried to debunk, most likely because it hits even closer to home for him). If the alarm inside his head telling him his little sister is in danger starts shrilling, he can be certain she’s in some sort of harm’s way and he won’t stand for it.</p><p>Not after they almost lost each other forever a couple years ago.</p><p> </p><p>He likes to think of himself as the rational one of their little trio, but right now, he can’t put together two thoughts that aren’t a mix of anger, panic and fear. All he wants to do is rush in and follow his sister’s trail before it’s too late, because the smell of blood and burnt ash from the Phlegethon Swamp area only inspire him further negative thoughts that are starting to catch up to him and poison the well of his mind. He knows he’s being reckless, and yet, he pushes through his barrier of rationality.</p><p>It can’t have gone over his partners’ heads. As much as he’ll give people thinking Endou is a brainless idiot credit, surely the latter can’t have not noticed a stark change in his friend’s attitude: multiple past missions and adventures have proved that to him. Gouenji, being noticeably more level-headed despite some hothead tendencies, has absolutely made note of it already and has simply kept quiet until now; perhaps because he already knows the answer to his question without needing to ask.</p><p> </p><p>He’s clutching his spear like a lifeline – it’s always given him a feeling of power, especially in times of hardship such as this one. He doesn’t think very clearly as he hacks through whatever monsters get thrown at him, sometimes throwing his weapon and retrieving it before he can get hit by another goon, sometimes seeing Endou panic and throw his shield between a monster and a comrade.</p><p>Yuuto figures this is where he should draw the line, but the fear of harm happening to his sister is too strong to stop. There’s nothing like the fury pulsing through him right now, to think of what could be happening to her, and the possibility they may arrive too late to do anything – he knows she can defend herself, she’s proven that time and time again, but</p><p> </p><p>He brushes blood that got splashed on his face from a nearby monster’s wound, swallows the taste of iron in his mouth and pressures onwards. There is no time to lose and no reason to stop for a break of any sort.</p><hr/><p> </p><p>From what he can see of Kidou and what he knows about the guy, Shuuya doesn’t think his friend is thinking clearly anymore… or that he ever did when they decided to go on that hunt for his sister’s safety.</p><p> </p><p>It’s not that he doesn’t understand the feeling: if Yuuka was in such the same position as Kidou is convinced his sister is, as she still hasn’t come back from a mission with her partner, he’d have been possessed like that too, would’ve rushed and burnt everything in his stead. It’s the most understandable feeling, to him, since he’s been in those shoes when he almost had to become a mercenary to save her from his blackmailers. He can only sympathize and, to be fair, if he wasn’t understanding of the feeling, he’d have never agreed to come.</p><p>However, since he’s not Kidou right about now, he can notice all of the sloppy mistakes his comrade is making. Usually, Kidou is the thinking head of their trio, while he’s the executioner and Endou is usually on the guard so they can avoid taking too much damage while Kidou calculates the best strategy when the situation calls for more than their reflexes and muscle memories. Tonight, however, has nothing to do with what habits they have: he’s the one who has to think so Endou and he can advance properly while Kidou is on a rampage.</p><p>Never anger an older brother – people like Kidou, Tsunami and he are perfect examples of that, and tonight’s adventure into darkness is almost <em>too</em> illustrating.</p><p> </p><p>Still, and as street-smart as he is, Shuuya isn’t too reassured with Kidou’s trance. They still don’t even know if their mission has a point, so he’s not been entirely on board, but there was no way to tear his friend from whatever fury he’s been in ever since he realized his sister hadn’t given a single life sign. He can’t do much except follow, he supposes…</p><p>The most concerning, however, is that he can see Kidou is bleeding from somewhere. Since the latter is in the lead and Endou is guarding their backs, the blood trail they see can’t be anyone’s but Kidou’s – to which their oh so level-headed tactician replied it may be Haruna’s, and that made him even more furious than he had been until that point. Not good, but also fairly predictable – getting caught in such a mindset does a number on your rationality. He’s learnt that the hard way.</p><p> </p><p>That does mean, on the other hand, that Endou and he need to be even more careful than he expected. There is no telling when Kidou’s adrenaline rush will end or when the blood loss will be too much: since they won’t stop running and there is no way either Endou or he will convince Kidou to stop so they can at least check if he’s injured (even though they have no need to check for that, because even Endou must have noticed the splatters of red on the ground in front of them and where they must have come from), Shuuya guessed a little while ago he’d have to muster what medical knowledge he has to make sure they don’t have a dead man on their hands.</p><p>In the meantime, he continues slaying enemies Kidou hasn’t seen as blood continues to spill, red or black, while they go through the charcoal trees of the Phlegethon Swamp. His sword slashes through hordes of monsters at a time, humanoid or not, not letting any chance get taken by them.</p><p> </p><p>He nonchalantly throws a potion of healing he’s had buckled to his belt in the direction of where he thinks Kidou’s injury is (on his right shoulder, since blood has splashed on this side of his face, and they haven’t faced a single red-blooded enemy since arriving here) and hopes everything will go as planned and they have an opportunity to do something about that wound.</p><hr/><p> </p><p>They’re finally reaching the end of the tunnel and, to be honest, Mamoru is very relieved of this fact.</p><p> </p><p>Usually, he’s the most enthusiastic of his group because, to put it bluntly, he’s always loved the thrill of a good quest. Of course, he does those to help around the people asking for them, and he’s never put much value in the prize (unlike Kidou, who always calculates the “risk-to-reward ratio” for a given mission, as he’d put it); but the thrill and adrenaline rushes are undeniably a huge part of why he’s here.</p><p>The thing is, now that he sees one of those rushes happening to someone else, he’s not sure if it was such a good idea to blindly follow his friend into a hunt when nothing except Haruna coming home late from a hunt of her own. Yes, he’s the most impulsive of the group, and he can’t deny that: that makes him a little knowledgeable on how rash that sort of decisions can be, right? Right?</p><p>Oh well, they’ve got no time to think over stuff like that: they have a mission to carry out and, tonight, he has someone whose back he needs to guard even more than usual.</p><p> </p><p>He’s been closer to Kidou than he ever has, to the point there’s blood splattering on his left side and around his shield, red droplets landing on its surface from time to time. It’s a little worrying, even if the thrill is here, and he’s glad he can pay his friend back for how many times he saved him by making him notice his own injuries and patch them up before it’d be too late.</p><p>Mamoru has never been the observant type, obviously, and he’d never pretend like he was, but even he can notice some things, especially if these are based on his habits. The one thing he’s noticing, unfortunately, is how reckless Kidou is being despite the very same Kidou usually scolding his head off at every opportunity given to make a misstep into a lesson to remember. Dashing into enemies like that, especially when he’s bleeding? Not a good idea.</p><p> </p><p>But, you know, there’s something familiar in Kidou’s rush to the lair of the enemy he suspects his sister fell to. Mamoru has felt it countless times – the most out of their trio, he’d say, due to what he’s been told is his “sanguine temperament” (he’s not a man of fancy words, this much he knows, he’d much rather call it “hotblooded” because that’s easier to understand and shorter to say) – so he knows what it feels like to power through an injury so you can arrive in time and do something.</p><p>The thing is, Mamoru is also familiar with the risks that comes with an adrenaline rush, mostly because his friends have had the patience to lie them in front of him. In the red-tinted atmosphere of the Swamp, it’s hard to tell about colours, so he has trouble seeing the paling skin typical of blood loss no matter how much he tries. What he can notice, however, is how Kidou’s pace has been progressively declining despite how hard his teeth are clenching, to the point Gouenji has gone ahead when it was the complete opposite earlier – he feels like he should do something about that, but what?</p><p> </p><p>Mamoru isn’t a talker nor a genius, so he tries to make things quick and safe as much as he can. His senses are more alert than usual, no doubt in part due to the smell of blood in the air that he doesn’t like much, so stopping incoming assaults and preventing some others by bashing some heads has to happen. He’d usually much rather hang in the back and make sure nothing creeps up on his friends, perhaps shedding some blood in exchange for their safety – but today is reverse role day, so he’s the careful one and Kidou is the one who gets hurt, apparently.</p><p>Mamoru doesn’t like that. He usually likes change and gets excited for things to be shaken up, but that change is one that doesn’t ruffle his feathers in the right way, and it makes it all wrong and unlikeable. At least, it’ll be over soon, so he better get back to bashing the enemies away and provide the backup he’s always made sure to bring to the table.</p><p>That’s pretty much all he can do aside from letting himself be bit by concern when seeing Kidou’s usually fluid movements slowly turn into a wobbly leg dance; and he’s smart enough to know which one is the better option.</p><hr/><p> </p><p>When they arrive at the clearing where Haruna was heading, he’s surprised. If he usually dislikes those because he’d much rather be able to predict every outcome to any situation, Yuuto can’t deny this one is, as is rarely the case, a good surprise: she’s safe and merely enjoying some time in private with her partner. In fact, she seems happy, waving at him as his trio steps into the calm and serene Temple of Hestia, where the scorching heat becomes a comforting warmth.</p><p>Seeing this, the energy that he had left vanishes in an instant and his knees buckle under him, prompting Haruna to run up to him screaming his name. She kneels to his level, concern all over her face and words, as they both discover at the exact same time why he’s so winded out, much more than usual:  a nasty, bleeding wound on his shoulder, barely hidden under the right edge of his cape. That’s not to forget a second injury near his side, much lighter since it’s closer to a scratch – but threatening nonetheless.</p><p> </p><p>That explains a lot of things that, now that he can breathe again, he noticed here and there, such as Gouenji speeding ahead when their usual formation has him in the middle, or Endou being so much closer to him when he’d usually barely see him and instead trust his voice rather than their eyes. They both seem very bothered about what just happened: to be fair, he did drag them through the burning swamp to discover Haruna was actually doing fine on her own. He’d be pretty miffed too if that was the case.</p><p>They nonetheless sit down next to him to take a breather as Haruna’s partner rushes to them, shield still in hand, the other holding a first-aid kit he remembers having given to his sister. He’s more than happy to drink a bitter healing potion, for once, especially since his teammates tell him they’ve been worried they were going to lose him.</p><p>Adrenaline makes you do things that should be impossible, doesn’t it? If he didn’t feel like his sister was in danger, he’d have never been able to pull through the pain and daze he’s now hit with like a hammer hitting a nail – he’s no Endou, he doesn’t have the constitution to do what this man can do on a weekly basis. He didn’t have time to bleed so that’s how he pressured on: that’s the only answer he can think of to give her when she asks how and why.</p><p> </p><p>Unlike him, Haruna hasn’t really been harmed – she managed to fight against the menace on her own with only one other person with her, whose bandaged appendages and indented shield show who protected who. She is, on the other hand, very much unamused by the injuries she’s busy patching up while she asks her partner to hand her different tool from their first aid kit.</p><p>They all deserve a nice, long break and to be away from that stupid swamp for a while, that’s for sure.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I like how I was like "woooooh Haruna's partner, so mysterious, so anonymous" but the fact said partner has a <em>shield</em> and my semblance of a reputation will clearly tell you who I had in mind all along. I'm almost sorry.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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